Only Time Will Tell Part 2
by kzlovers
Summary: This is the continuation of my story Only Time Will Tell. Ratchet begins his new life in his new home on Planet Veldin and realizes as he begins to go through adventures with his new friend Clank that not everything is as it seems.
1. Chapter 1

Ratchet and Clank: A Crack in Time fanfic

Genre: romance, adventure, some mystery, humor

Warnings: Slash, yaoi, boy/boy (you get the picture), the rating is T, cussing, violence

Pairing: Ratchet/Alister

Hope you all enjoy!

Only Time Will Tell: Part 2

Ch.1- Setup

The universe could be considered a place of silence and peace for the most part; at least, a part of the galaxy that a certain yellow Lombax was traveling through. This Lombax was named Ratchet.

He was heading towards Planet Veldin at the moment. Even though all of his family and friends lived on Fastoon, he chose to live on Veldin because he prefers this planet. Technically, he was still in the move-in process, but the last of his possessions were in the back of his ship. To correct this thought as well, the ship belonged to his father Kaden. He was in the process of building his own ship on Veldin.

Ratchet was glad that he would be living on his own. He would miss everyone, but it time to have his own place to live. A call was then coming in. His father, Kaden, appeared on the screen.

Kaden grinned, "Hey son!"

"Hey dad," Ratchet greeted back. He loved his dad, but it was hard to talk to him. The younger always assumed it was because of the divorce between his parents. It was when the awkwardness started, even if it had been several years ago.

"Have you arrived on Veldin yet?" His dad always worried too much.

Ratchet answered, "Not yet. I'm almost there though."

Kaden nodded, "Okay. Just message me when you get there. I want to make sure you arrive safely. Talk to you later Ratchet." The call ended right then. The conversations between them were always short and awkward.

Memories from the past started to fill Ratchet's head. He thought of the divorce between his parents. He was about ten when it had happened. All the details were not known about the situation, but everything seemed to have been going perfect. He felt like the divorce was sudden and unexpected.

Other thoughts from the past then started to come to mind. Ratchet had been born and raised in Fastoon. Most things he knew and learned came from his home, even his friends, family, and schooling.

The only friend who didn't live on Fastoon anymore was Angela Cross. She left a couple years ago but he hoped to visit her now that he lived closer to where she was. They had actually tried to date once, but that was just weird so it didn't last long.

He knew he would miss his mom a lot. Her name was Cara and she was one the nicest Lombaxes you would ever meet. She would always make 'get well' cupcakes whenever any of her friends or neighbors were sick. It was nice since her cooking was amazing. She's works at the bakery in town so she knows how to cook, deserts anyway. Although, she was bad at cooking meals either, but deserts was her specialty.

On other thoughts, he didn't get to travel much until around eight, but even then, he could only travel with family. The only exception was Alister Azimuth. The bad thing was that Alister was gone all the time so he has not seen the elder for a several years physically. He saw the other much more when he was younger, but around his seven or eight, Azimuth started having to travel all over the universe for various things for work. Ratchet had not seen Alister face to face since he was twelve. He missed him constantly. They always got along and he felt even closer to the general than to his father, even if they never see each other and always have to call one another. The younger Lombax had talked to the elder when his parents got divorced and he was a great help.

Speaking of which, another call came through. It was Alister. The elder smiled, "Hello Ratchet. How are you?" Ratchet usually got annoyed when others constantly called him, but never with the general.

The younger grinned, "Not much. I'm just heading towards Veldin. How's work?" Alister was in another galaxy for work purposes.

He smiled back, "Alright. Things are going pretty slow at the moment. I have a meeting later this afternoon. How has moving in been going? I apologize that I have not been able to help you." He then noted, "And I have not seen in a long time. I apologize for that as well."

It did hurt to never see the elder. Like said, he cared about the other deeply. They were good friends and all. Well, Azimuth was technically Kaden's best friend, but he just felt this connection with the older Lombax that he couldn't quite understand. Regardless, he tried not to let it bother him.

Ratchet smiled, "Its ok. However, if you feel that bad, then come visit me when you get time. You can see my new house. It's kind of small, but I'm the only one living there so it doesn't have to be big."

"That would be nice." The general nodded, "I can't believe you are old enough to own your own home. I remember back when you were a kid and…"

"No! No! Stop it," Ratchet interrupted, "That was a long time ago, and I'm not a kid anymore. So don't think of me as one." He didn't know why but having the elder think of him as a child wasn't annoying, but it hurt. He wanted Alister to think of him as an adult.

"I apologize. I know you're not a kid anymore. I just think that way sometimes and the last time I actually saw you was when you were twelve."

The general's eyes had saddened. He felt guilty. Ratchet was sad about it too but he knew the other didn't do it on purpose.

"Well, maybe when you're done with the work in that galaxy, you can come see me. Can you?" Ratchet asked.

Alister rubbed his chin in thought for a moment. "Let me see," he got out his planner. "It looks like I'll have a couple days off after this. It has been a long time since I have had that much time off in years. I had been planning to head back to Fastoon," he looked at the younger, "But I can come visit you first if you like."

Ratchet's face lit up right. "Really?! Awesome! I can't wait."

The younger Lombax had the biggest grin on his face. He didn't care that he would have to unpack and get everything ready quickly before the other came. Getting to see the general would be the best thing ever.

An alarm went off an Alister's end. He looked at it before looking at Ratchet once more, "Well, I need to head to a meeting. I will call you later about visiting so you know when I will be done. It will be nice to see you." Azimuth didn't seem to admit that type of stuff often but he did more so around Ratchet than most.

Ratchet smiled, "Okay. Good luck and I hope it goes well. Bye Alister."

"Goodbye Ratchet."

The general hung up right then. The yellow Lombax's eyes saddened again. He really didn't understand why he missed the other so much.

Regardless, he shook his head and focused on getting to Veldin. He couldn't wait to see what the future would bring him in his new home and now living on his own.

*Hey guys! I finally started OTWT part 2. YAY! I hope you guys like this chapter. I know things are probably really confusing right now, but bear with me. You will all understand soon enough, I promise. Thanks for reading everyone! :)


	2. Chapter 2

Ratchet and Clank: A Crack in Time fanfic

Genre: romance, adventure, some mystery, humor

Warnings: Slash, yaoi, boy/boy (you get the picture), the rating is T, cussing, violence

Pairing: Ratchet/Alister

Hope you all enjoy!

Only Time Will Tell Part 2

Ch. 2- A New Friend

The weather outside wasn't too bad. This was the thought that pasted through Ratchet's mind as he worked on his ship.

The Lombax had been moved in into his new home on Veldin for a couple weeks now. Despite not being there long, however, everything had been unpacked and put in its proper place. The reason for all of this quickness was because he had a visit last week. Alister came over for a visit. It was a nice thought and Ratchet thought of it more than he should.

*Flashback*

The last of his belongings were put away and everything had been cleaned. Now, he just had to wait. Today was an important day, for Alister was coming to visit.

He had not seen the other in years. Excitement was a good word to use for how the younger Lombax felt. He was pretty proud of himself as well considering he only had a few days to get the place set up for the general's arrival. Alister did offer to help but he did not want to spend what little time he got with Azimuth unpacking.

The older Lombax should be here any minute. He could not wait to see him. A smile grew on Ratchet's face.

*End of Flashback*

"OW!" was heard as Ratchet held his hand. That's what he gets for drifting off in thought while working. He hurts his hand. Great.

Standing up, the Lombax went into his house to grab a bandage, He only cut one finger but it was bleeding so a bandage seemed necessary if he was to continue his work.

He walked into the bathroom and took a band aid out before cleaning the cut and placing it on there. Once done, he decided to go sit in the living room for a moment since it still stung.

The living was kind of bare but it had the essentials, like a couch, a couple chairs, a small table, and of course a TV. The thought of watching television had pasted through his mind, but he glanced over to the door and drifted off again.

*Flashback*

A knock was heard on the door. Ratchet practically jumped from excitement. He went over to the door and answered. What he saw was a white Lombax with red stripes.

The elder smiled, "Hello Ratchet."

"Hey Alister. Come on in." Ratchet grinned back before stepping aside to let the other in.

The general looked around in the living room with his eyes. "It looks nice in here. Did you get everything unpacked?"

"And put a way. Yeah."

Azimuth looked back at Ratchet. "You really have everything together. I'm proud of you."

The younger's cheeks started to burn. He didn't know why. It must be happiness from making the general proud of him.

"So, do you want anything to drink?" Ratchet asked.

"Water is fine if you don't mind."

"No Alister. I mind but I asked anyway." A smirk grew on the yellow Lombax's face.

Azimuth threw the other a playful glare, "Alright you. Go get it or I'll get it myself."

Ratchet laughed before disappearing into the kitchen for a moment. He came back a few seconds later with two glasses of water. He set both on the table but one was placed in front of the elder. Ratchet sat next to Alister on the couch. He had missed the other so much.

*End of Flashback*

After some thought, Ratchet decided to go back outside and try to finish his ship. He continued to work for a couple more hours.

Suddenly, he saw what he thought might have been a meteor. It crashed not far from where he lived. Deciding that he needed to take a break anyway, he left his house to go find what had crashed.

Of course, while getting there, he went back to some of his thoughts.

*Flashback*

The day with Alister had been great. It did not seem like long enough before it started to get late. Ratchet did not want to keep the other out but he didn't want him to leave either.

They were able to catch up on so many things. Alister told him all about work and Ratchet told him about the moving in process. It was so nice. He felt more comfortable around the general than anyone else. It was quite strange.

Azimuth noticed the sun setting. He looked back at the younger. "Well, it's getting late. I should probably head out."

He then noticed Ratchet's expression sadden. He did not want to leave, for it had been so long since he had really been able to see the other but he had to leave.

"Do you have to? I mean, it's late. You could stay here and leave in the morning. I have a spare bedroom set up so there's somewhere you can sleep."

Not going to lie, Ratchet had set up one room to be a spare bedroom so when Alister came to visit then he could stay since it had been so long since they've seen one another.

Azimuth's eyes widened. He was surprised by the request. Alister smiled, "I can stay and leave in the morning."

Ratchet's face lit up was what the elder saw. A huge grin was on his face.

"Okay! Hey, since you're staying, do you want to watch a movie?"

"Sure."

Alister and Ratchet used to have movie nights when he babysitting. Well, Ratchet would call it 'hanging out' not 'babysitting'.

*End of Flashback*

Finally reaching his destination, Ratchet found the crash site. There was not much to the crash, surprisingly. He looked down in the hole in the ground and saw a little white robot that looked like a box. Making a decision, he decided to take the robot to back to his house.

He then headed back to his house. The trip back was faster since he knew where he was going this time.

Once reaching his house, he set the little robot down and started to work on his ship once more. He wondered where the little robot came from but thought he would wait to see if he would turn back on. Until then, he started to think about how the movie went.

*Flashback*

They looked through what movies the younger had. He forgot that he left most of his movies at home because he forgot them. He was going to pick them up next week. Most of what he had was what his mom packed, which were romance movies.

Alister couldn't help but laugh. The situation had been explained but it was still funny. Ratchet was embarrassed. He loved his mom, but not her movie choices.

Regardless, the general picked one out and put it in. It was called Daylight. It was about a Markazian girl who was in a love triangle with a Cazar and a Thug. She was in love with the Thug, who was surprisingly not ugly like most, but he could hurt her at any moment by accident because of his 'strength' but he left and the Cazar took care of her and fell in love with her. She ended up being with the Thug after she found him because he almost committed suicide since he thought she was dead.

Of course, there was more to the story. That was only the first two, for Daylight was in a series of four books/ five movies. The others were Old Moon, Ellipse, and Fixing Dawn Parts 1 and 2.

They chose to just watch the first movie. Once in, the Lombaxes sat on the couch. The movie went by for a while and it was not of much interest to either one of them. After all, this was not their type of movies.

However, they still sat there and watched. Ratchet's eyes were becoming heavy and sleep sounded nice. He had been so busy the past couple of days to get his house ready, that he honestly barely slept, that and excitement kept him up as well.

As the movie continued, the younger wasn't paying attention to what he was doing. His head fell and it fell on the general's shoulder. Alister felt the extra weight and looked to see Ratchet fell asleep on him.

Coming to a decision, Alister picked up the remote and paused the movie. After doing so, He positioned himself and the other before lifting Ratchet bridal style.

He went to Ratchet's room. The younger had given him a tour earlier that day so he knew where to go. When there, he laid the other down and put the cover on him.

Ratchet had woken up the next day and Azimuth had explained what happened. The younger felt really bad about it because he felt like he had been a horrible host. The elder had just laughed and said not to worry about it.

The general then had to leave to head to Fastoon. Ratchet understood but he did wish the other could stay. He felt so needy around Azimuth; it was quite pathetic, is what he thought to himself.

Before leaving, Ratchet gave Alister a hug. He had not done this since he was little, but this hug, felt so different and warm. The hug was returned and shared for longer than either would admit.

The general then went on his way and headed back to Fastoon.

*End of Flashback*

Eyes opened slowly before completely adjusting to their surroundings. Once adjusted, however, he outstretched himself to his original form. Ratchet heard the noise and looked behind him to see a tiny white robot not looking like a complete box anymore.

"Hey, you're awake I see." Ratchet replied.

"Why yes, I am. I am XJ-0461. And what is your name?"

"I'm Ratchet. And, can I just call you Clank?"

Clank kind of shrugged before doing a slight nod, "Now, I have important matters to worry about. Is there any way you can take your ship and fly me to see that man?" Clank then pointed at a poster Ratchet had outside.

"What? Captain Qwark? I mean, I would, but I'm missing an important part in my ship and there's no way I can get it right now."

Clank's eye glowed slightly for a few seconds before turning back to normal. He faced the Lombax.

"I know what you need. I can provide it."

Ratchet's eyes widened, "Really? You can start my ship?"

"Yes, but I must be in the ship in order to do it."

"So, you're saying that if I take you to find this guy, then I can use my ship?"

"Exactly," Clank answered.

Ratchet nodded, "Okay, let's do it."

He knew that he would have to leave the planet in order to buy the part he needed so he could take Clank to where he needed and buy the part. That sounded like a good plan.

They both entered the Lombax's ship and left Veldin. Ratchet had no idea how much of an adventure he was about to have.

*Hey guys! Thanks for reading! I thought it would be cool to weave a flashback in the chapter. I haven't done this much so I thought I would. I hope everyone enjoyed it. See you in the next chapter!


	3. Chapter 3

Ratchet and Clank: A Crack in Time fanfic

Genre: romance, adventure, some mystery, humor

Warnings: Slash, yaoi, boy/boy (you get the picture), the rating is T, cussing, violence

Pairing: Ratchet/Alister

Hope you all enjoy!

Only Time Will Tell Part 2

Ch. 3- Emotions?

Ratchet P.O.V.

To summarize what has happened since I met my new friend Clank, we found the guy named Derk and stopped him along with Captain Qwark who turned out to be a bad guy instead of a hero like most believed from destroying Veldin. Then there was when Qwark let the blue pet from Megacorp loose and I had to stop him with the help from Angela Cross. The funny story about that is that I was working to get it back but did not realize I had been fighting her. She had not recognized me either because we had not seen one another since we were little, but in the end, we worked together to stop Qwark. Clank and I ended up getting an apartment in Metropolis because of this whole ordeal. After that, we fought a guy named Dr. Nefarious who tried to turn all organics into robots but failed. The last thing was that I got kidnapped, well, twice. I got kidnapped by a crazy little girl the first time and was kidnapped to participate in these galactic games to the death after that.

These were a good amount of years. I miss the adventures though. I haven't had an adventure in over a year; perhaps even two. I'm not really sure how long it's been.

Well, now that some things have been explained, I can talk about today. Today, I'm going to my home planet of Fastoon. I wish I could say it was for good reasons. My cousin, my mom's sister, my aunt and her husband, had two children and the oldest died in a ship crash last week. We think he actually got into a space battle with ship pirates, but we are not for sure.

I was in my room getting my tie on. I could not tie a tie if it were to save my life. Regardless, I tried anyway and it looked horrible. A knock was then heard before a little white robot entered.

"Are you ready?" Clank asked.

"As ready as I'll ever be."

"It appears your tie is a little off."

I nodded, "Yeah, I know. I can't tie these things at all."

"I am sure your father can help you before the funeral."

"Maybe Alister will be there. He knows how to do these."

Clank shook his head, "I don't know what problem you have with your father but I hope you will both come to an understanding."

I wasn't really sure of that myself. I mean, I had guesses, but I never feel comfortable around him and I really don't understand why. It's something I try not to think about.

"Anyway, I'm ready to go whenever you are," I respond, trying to change the subject.

"Alright. Let's go then."

We both grab any last minute things we need, like the flowers for my aunt and uncle, and head out. The trip to Fastoon from Metropolis was not too long of a trip. It was definitely shorter than if we lived in Veldin still. I mean, I still own the house there, but I don't go there often. I do like to go to get alone time or work on mechanics.

We arrived after a while and I was glad to see it. I mean, I'm not looking forward to the funeral, but I'm glad that I will be able to get out of this ship. Once the ship was landed, I jumped out quickly. The trip took forever.

Clank giggled a little, "I see were in a big hurry to get out Ratchet."

"That trip took forever. I hate sitting that long."

He only laughed a little more before we left the ship. I landed right by my mom's house. I was planning to stay with her for the night. I had my room to stay in back when I lived here and there was a spare room that Clank could use.

Once at my mom's house, I rang the doorbell. It didn't take long for her to answer. She hated making others wait. She felt it was rude.

The door was opened and a smile spread across the woman's face. "Hi Ratchet."

"Hi mom."

I received a hug and then the female Lombax got on one knee to give Clank a hug. "Hi Clank."

"Hello Ms. Spanner."

She grinned again, "Always so formal. Please, call me Cara. Now come on in."

Clank and I walked in and put our stuff into our rooms. We've done this before so we didn't need to be shown around, and of course I've lived here all my life. That helps too.

When our stuff was put up, we went back to the living room. I showed her the flowers I got. They were light purple tulips. Tulips were my aunt's favorite flowers. It would be nice to see Aunt Rosa and Uncle John again. Seeing Cousin Michael would be nice too, but I won't ever get to see Gabriel… I pushed the thoughts back as I showed my mom the flowers.

Cara replied, "These are lovely. Rosa will appreciate these."

I smiled, "Yeah, I thought she would like them."

"Oh," She noticed something, "Your tie is crooked. You may want your father to look at it, or Alister."

I nodded, "I thought I would try to find Alister before the funeral or there before it starts."

"Well, how about you head over to his place and see if he is there. I can meet you at the funeral home. What would you like to do Clank?"

Clank turned towards Cara before answering, "I will go with you. I will see you there Ratchet."

I nodded. Cara and Clank left. However, the door flew open two seconds later and Cara popped her head back inside.

"Did you want me to take the flowers or would you like to take them?"

I smiled, "How about you take them since you are heading there."

Cara walked back in and picked up the flowers. She then pecked Ratchet's cheek.

"Mom!" I however grinned with my response.

Cara just laughed before walking out of the house once more. I loved my mom and missed her a lot. I was always glad to come home to see her.

Sooner after they left, I did the same. I headed towards Alister's house. The feeling I had was almost… nervous. I don't why but I always felt this way before seeing the elder. Ever since I saw him when he came to my house, I have been able to see the elder more, but I always feel nervous. The thing is, is that it's not a bad nervous. It's almost like a happy nervous, excitement. I don't know.

I shake my head to get rid of these thoughts as I near Alister's place. It did not take long to get there. When arriving, I knocked on the door.

"One moment!" I heard yelled back.

Not two seconds later did the door open to reveal a white Lombax.

Azimuth smiled, "Hello Ratchet."

"Hey Alister," I grinned back.

"Shouldn't you be at the funeral home? I was about to head there myself."

I scratched the back of my head with a grin still on my face. "Well, I kind of had problems with my tie…"

Alister laughed slightly. "You always have problems with ties. Come on in. I need to get something for your aunt and uncle that are in my room. Would you like to walk over there with me?"

"Sure," I answered. My cheeks felt hot all of a sudden.

I walked into his house and waited in the living room while he went to get what he needed. I looked around. There were pictures on the book shelf he had in the corner. There was a couple from when the general was still a kid. One had him and Kaden when they both participated in their first hover boot race here in town. Kaden had his arm around Azimuth's shoulder. I felt… angry.

No, that can't be. I looked at another picture and it was one of me and Alister. I was around four or five at the time and I was sitting on his shoulders. He always thinks of me as a child. Now I felt sad. God damn it! Why am I feeling such strange stuff? There's no reason for it…

"Ratchet?"

Turning my head, I saw the general hold a vase with flowers in it. There were a variety in the vase but most were tulips but just different colors.

He smiled, "Looking at old pictures?"

"Yeah," I answer but my voice doesn't hold its usual enthusiasm.

Azimuth noticed this and he frowned. "Are you okay Ratchet?"

A fake grin was put on my face before I answer, "Yeah, I'm fine."

"… Alright. You want some help with that tie then."

I nod. He puts the flowers on the table before approaching me. I usually have my father do my ties. Honestly, I don't Alister has done a tie for me since I was little.

The elder stood in front of me before moving his hands to adjust my tie. He messed with it some but then moved closer to get a better look at the knot. I guess I did that bad of a job.

However, I was able to feel his breath slightly and this made me freeze. I don't know why but I suddenly felt extremely nervous. My hands even started to sweat.

I felt so confused. I always get weird and feel ways around the general that I never feel around anyone else. I mean, I always thought it was because I admired him, but I don't know. I admire my mom but this is different. It feels like something more, but…

"There." This snapped me out of my thoughts and I looked at the elder. "I got it. You sure made a mess out of that tie."

Alister smiled at me but I then frown. He must have noticed I was in thought because he asked, "Ratchet? Are you okay?"

"Oh, uh, yeah. Sorry, I was just thinking."

"About what?"

"Well…" He didn't know how to explain it. He didn't want it to sound weird or anything.

"You do not have to talk about it if you do not want to."

"That's not it." I explained. Maybe I could phrase it differently. "Have you ever felt strange around someone, like, you know you care about them and you thought you always admired them in a way but you start to question what it really is?"

"What do you mean?" Alister asked.

"Well, I mean that there is someone who I have admired for a while and thought they were really cool, but lately, I've noticed that I have been feeling different towards them. Like, my feeling of admiration is stronger yet feels different in a sense. I'm not sure how to explain it."

"Hmm…" Alister thought for a moment. He then had an idea. "Perhaps you like them more than just a friend; maybe even be in love with them."

My eyes widened. I had not even thought of that, but when actually said, it sort of makes sense. What doesn't make sense is that I have dated girls before but I don't think I felt enough for them because we would never stay together that long. I dated Sasha the longest, but even then, something didn't feel right. Could I really have feelings for Alister?

"Well, we better get going or we will be late." He looked at me, "If you want to talk about this more, you can always come see me. Now, let's get going."

I nodded before following the elder out and heading towards the funeral.

*Hey guys! Thanks for reading! You've known Alister all your life and you're now starting to question your feelings? ... Geez. XD

Let me know what you think and I hope to see you in the next chapter!


	4. Chapter 4

Ratchet and Clank: A Crack in Time fanfic

Genre: romance, adventure, some mystery, humor

Warnings: Slash, yaoi, boy/boy (you get the picture), the rating is T, cussing, violence

Pairing: Ratchet/Alister

Hope you all enjoy!

Only Time Will Tell

Ch. 4- Race For Fun

The funeral service had been nice. Everything was set up and all the flowers were beautiful. Everything was had gone well. By the time the funeral had come to an end, the sun was setting but would be that way for a little while.

Ratchet, Clank, and Cara all headed back to the house. She unlocked the door and they all went inside.

"It's good to be home." Cara replied.

"Yeah." Ratchet responded with a smile.

"So, what do you boys want to do tonight? I have board games, movies. What sounds good?" Cara was looking through the cabinets under the TV.

"How about a board game?" Clank asked.

Cara nodded, "Sure."

"We could do both." The younger Lombax suggested.

Cara added, "And popcorn! You both can look for a movie while I make the popcorn."

A second later she was out of the room. Ratchet and Clank both laughed lightly before searching through the movies and games. The Lombax knew Clank wanted to play a game of chess but that could happen since there were three of them, so they picked out the Uno cards instead. Before a movie could be picked out, however, Cara came rushing back out.

"Ratchet?" She asked while walking over to her son with an envelope, "I forgot to give this to Alister. I was thanking him for helping with some of the funeral planning and financial help. Could you take this over to him?"

Ratchet stood and answered, "Sure." A look was then given to Clank. "You both can play chess while I'm gone."

A grin was given to them before he left the house and headed over to Azimuth's place once more. Ratchet was happy that he would get the chance to see the general again. Even though the Lombax saw the general less than an hour ago, he was looking forward to seeing him.

When Ratchet arrived, he walked up to the door but was surprised when the door was suddenly opened when he had been about to knock. The one who opened the door was Kaden. His eyes widened.

"Oh! Hey son."

"Hi dad," The younger responded, "What are you doing here?" Ratchet felt strange but it almost like… jealousy? No, that couldn't be right.

"I was here for a visit. A short one though because I have to work tomorrow. What about you?"

"I came to give Alister a thank you card for helping with the funeral and all."

He grinned, "Oh, that's nice of you. Well, I'm off. I'll see you later Ratchet."

Kaden gave his son a pat on the back before leaving… Yep, still awkward.

A white Lombax then noticed the younger and said, "Ratchet?"

"Hey Alister," was answered along with a wave.

"What are you doing here?" He walked up to the door.

An envelope was given to the elder. The general took it and read the card inside. Ratchet and Clank had their names in it but hadn't actually signed it. Cara did it for them since they didn't get here until the day of. The both of them could have signed it before the funeral but she wanted everything to be ready so just did it.

Alister smiled, "Thank you. This was very nice."

"No need to thank me. I'm happy you helped. Thank you Alister." The younger was sincere with that. He has helped a lot. Even though Kaden and Cara don't really talk, Alister is still kind to her and her family and he tries to help with stuff when he can. Ratchet thought it might be because he was Kaden's . That thought kind of makes the younger feel sad as well as happy.

"Hey," he snapped the smaller Lombax from his thoughts, "Would you like to go hover boot racing? We could go to the place outside of town."

Ratchet nodded before following the other out to the hover boot course. It was not too far from the town. Kaden and Alister had made their own course when they were younger. Ratchet liked it better than the one in town.

When arriving, they both went to the starting line before making sure their boots were ready. The course was surrounded by trees and other plant life. If though Fastoon was a desert type planet, that didn't mean that there wasn't any plant life or beauty.

The Lombaxes readied themselves. The general had set a start alarm at the controls by the course to go off for them. When in the position, beeps started to go off. Three went before a loud horn blew and away the Lombaxes went.

It started off as a straight away dirt road. There was then a curve that went to the left before going back to the right and straight again. Not far ahead was a hill that had needed a good jump in order to make it to the other side of the track. Ratchet and Alister had done the course so many times that they knew when to speed up to make the perfect jump. They had done just that. The Lombaxes had sped up at the same time, went over the hill, and jumped.

The younger and the elder made it to the other side. This ledge they had to make was to a higher up platform that then lead to a stable wooden bridge. The bridge went to a hill that took them higher up.

They made it to the top of the hill. The rest was downhill from there, literally. They both had to speed down a tall hill while avoiding rocks and trees while going at ridiculously high speeds. Ratchet and Alister swerved around obstacles. They were both really close.

After some more avoiding and more speeding, they both crossed the finish line. Major slowing down had to be done by both so they wouldn't run into anything.

Alister won. Ratchet was not mad or anything, but he has never been able to beat the general in a race, no matter how hard he tried. Of course, it's been years since they have raced. Trying to push the thought into the back of his mind, the younger walked up to the other with a grin.

"Great race Alister. Good job."

"You too. You did great." Azimuth smiled, "Now, how about we head back to my place and get cleaned up. I'm sure your mom would shoot me if you went back all dirty."

Ratchet laughed loudly, "Yeah, she is obsessive over having a clean home."

The elder joined in the laughter before they left. They rode their hoover boots back to the general's house to get there in less time. When arriving, they both went into Azimuth's home.

"Come this way Ratchet. You have quite a bit of dirt on you. Let's get you cleaned up a little until you can shower at your mom's house."

Following the elder, he was lead into the restroom. Alister grabbed some towels and washcloths. Water and soap had been applied to one of the washcloths.

Turning towards the younger, he noticed quite a bit of dirt on his face. Without thinking, Azimuth grabbed Ratchet's chin lightly with a couple fingers to lift his head up and keep it steady while wiping the dirt away. Ratchet had been shocked by the sudden touches. It should not have been weird, but with some of his current thoughts, he felt his cheeks heating up. While cleaning, Alister noticed that Ratchet's cheeks had turned red rather quickly. He wondered if the other felt alright.

"Are you okay Ratchet?"

"Y-Yeah."

A stutter came from the younger. How odd. The cleaning continued and the washcloth then went over Ratchet's bottom lip. This caused the younger to blush more. He was really trying to stop it but he couldn't help it for some reason.

While Ratchet was thinking these thoughts, Azimuth continued to clean the lip. He didn't know why, but he suddenly felt something strange when looking at Ratchet's lips.

Looking up, he noticed the other's cheeks had turned a deeper red. Without realizing it, he stared at those emerald eyes. Something about them seemed, captivating.

Alister rubbed his thumb over Ratchet's chin and lower lip. Something seemed… familiar about this. Was that the word for this? Familiar? And why was he suddenly feeling so strange?

The phone then rang which made them both jump slightly. Azimuth let go of Ratchet's chin before exiting the bathroom to answer the phone.

While gone, the yellow Lombax finished cleaning himself. He was even more confused than earlier that day. He knew he always felt different towards the general, but didn't realize until recently that it could be more than a fatherly view, and why did Alister act the way he did just now? He never rubs his chin, or lip, or even stare at him like that.

Ratchet shook his head. He was probably just over thinking Alister's actions. Leaving the bathroom, the younger Lombax went to see Alister in the kitchen on the phone. Walking in, the phone was hung up shortly after. The elder then noticed the other enter the room.

"Hello Ratchet. Finished cleaning I see. I am sorry about that."

"It's ok. What was the call about?" Alister looked worried.

"Nothing. Don't worry about it."

Ratchet crossed his arms. "Alister. Tell me. You look worried."

A light laugh came from the white Lombax before he answered, "It was a call from work. We were supposed to have an important meeting tomorrow but it has been postponed."

"Why?"

"… It appears that Dr. Nefarious is back."

Ratchet's eyes widened, "What? How?"

"I do not know. He apparently is back. I do not know all of the details but because of his appearance, it has caused problems on other planets. Well, the planet the meeting was supposed to be on anyway."

"…" The younger was quiet. He was not sure what to say.

Azimuth noticed the worry on his face. He decided to change the subject. The Lombaxes went outside. A smile was then given to the smaller Lombax.

"Well Ratchet, it's going to get dark soon. You better get home before Cara worries. Thank you for the race. It was fun."

Alister turned and was about to head into his home but stopped when he felt a pull on his arm. He looked back to find Ratchet holding his lower arm in one of his hands.

"Ratchet?"

Ratchet couldn't believe he just did that and felt his whole face heat up. He was quiet for a moment, trying to think of something to say. He then thought of a question that he had actually wanted to ask the elder for a long time but never had. Why not now?

"Alister? This may seem random, but I always wondered something. I didn't know how to ask it… or if you would answer it. That's why I never asked, but I thought of it today."

The arm was let go of. Azimuth was confused by the younger's actions, but smiled to hide the confusion.

"Ask away Ratchet. You can ask me anything."

Kaden's son had been looking at the ground but then looked up after the other spoke.

"Well, I always wondered… Why didn't you ever get married? Now that I think about it, I don't think I have ever seen you date. And I know it's not because women don't go after you because I would say that's a lie."

Alister was surprised by the question, but he couldn't help but laugh at how Ratchet had said his dating thought. His eyes softened.

"Let's just say, I haven't found 'the one' yet."

"… And how will you know when you have?"

Alister placed a hand on Ratchet's shoulder, looked him in the eye and said, "You may not realize it at first, but everything will fall into place. You may have doubts, but the universe will find a way to prove them wrong and you'll know all over again."

The white Lombax smiled. He then removed his hand and became serious once more.

"Now get home. I don't want your mother to worry."

Ratchet smiled, "Yeah, I know. She worried too much."

A chuckle came from the general, "I know, but that change my response. Now get!"

The yellow Lombax grinned before waving goodbye and leaving. He had questions, thoughts and doubts, but he was sure that he at least felt something more for Alister. He was just not sure on the details yet.

*Hey guys! Finally! I finished this chapter! Yay! Thanks for reading! I hope you all liked it. Sorry that not too much happened. The story will progress more in the next chapter. It was nice to write some A/R moments in here there, even if there are only hints. Again, thanks for reading and see you all in the next chapter!


	5. Chapter 5

Ratchet and Clank: A Crack in Time fanfic

Genre: romance, adventure, some mystery, humor

Warnings: Male slash, boy/boy (you get the picture), the rating is T, cussing, violence

Pairing: Ratchet/Alister

Hope you all enjoy!

Only Time Will Tell Part 2

Ch. 5- A New Adventure

The sun was up and shining brightly everywhere, including through the windows of some homes. Ratchet had been fortunate enough to catch some of this bright sun through his window. He groaned and turned away. For some odd reason, he always seemed to get the terrible luck of the sun shining right in his face.

After a few minutes of trying to hide from the light, the yellow Lombax gave up and got out of bed. When looking at the clock, he felt it was too early but knew everyone else would be up so he may as well be anyways.

Ratchet left his room and walked to the kitchen. Something seemed off. Cara was there but Clank wasn't. He didn't figure that Clank would still be asleep.

"Good morning mom," Ratchet greeted, "Where's Clank?"

Cara looked towards Ratchet with a confused expression. "He didn't wake you up this morning to tell you he was leaving?"

"… What? He left?"

The female Lombax nodded, "Yes. I don't know what for but he asked me to give you this." She handed him and envelope.

"Thanks." Ratchet then walked outside and opened the letter before he started reading it.

Dear Ratchet,

I am sorry about leaving on such short notice. I received a visit from someone unexpected. Though I do not know what all will happen in my absence, I must let you know that my leaving was necessary. Please be safe while I am gone. I am aware about some of the misdealing's happening ever since the appearance of Dr. Nefarious. Though you may think I disappeared because of him, I did not. I ask that you go after and try to stop the evil doctor, for I am sure he is out to cause much harm like last time. All I ask is that you do not go alone. I fear your safety, I have reason to believe there is more going on than either of us thinks. So, please be careful.

Your friend,

Clank

The letter was folded back up and put back into the envelope. He had to find Dr. Nefarious and stop him. The question was where to start? He didn't know anything about the doctor until Alister mentioned something last night.

Wait! Alister! The general had a few meetings cancelled because of the whole ordeal with the doctor. Maybe he could give him a hint on where he could go.

Ratchet got up and popped his head in the house to let his mom know he was going out before heading to the general's house.

When arriving, he knocked on the door but there was not answer. Because of this, Ratchet walked to the back of the house and saw Alister working on his ship.

"Hey Alister." Ratchet greeted.

The elder's ears perked and he turned before smiling at the younger.

"Well hello Ratchet. What brings you here?"

"I actually wanted to ask you about something if you don't mind."

"Sure," Azimuth nodded, "Let's sit."

The two Lombaxes went over to the table that was on the back porch. There were two chairs so they could both take a seat.

"What's on your mind?" The general asked.

"You know how you were talking about some of meetings that got cancelled because of Dr. Nefarious?" Ratchet asked, "Could you tell me what places those were?"

Azimuth frowned, "Why do you want to know that?"

Ratchet got out his letter and handed it to the other. The elder read it quickly and a confused expression appeared on his face.

"Clank left?"

"Yes. I don't know why or where he went. That's all he left me. He was gone when I got up this morning. He asked me to go after Dr. Nefarious because he could not. I don't know what he's doing but I trust him and I do know that if I don't stop Nefarious, then no one will."

Alister looked at the younger when he was done looking through the letter. "But you will be alone now."

"I know. And I know that Clank wanted someone to come with me but I don't know who. I've never worked with anyone."

"How about your father?"

Ratchet shook his head, "I'd rather not. I don't not trust my father but I just have a bad feeling if I do."

"…" The general thought for a moment, "How about me?"

"Huh? What about work?"

"It's fine. The doctor keeps having my meetings cancelled anyway. Besides," he paused, "I would rather someone is with you than you doing this alone."

"I can take care of myself."

"I am aware of this but I also know that Dr. Nefarious is not a simple criminal. He almost caused all organics to become robotic. I want to come with you."

Ratchet nodded, "Ok."

"How about you pick up any belongings you need and meet me back here in an hour?"

"Sounds good." Ratchet then left to get his stuff together.

Alister smiled. He always enjoyed the younger's company.

"You both seem pretty close."

Azimuth turned towards the voice to see Kaden coming from the other side of the yard. He must have walked around the other side of the house to get to the yard.

"Oh, hi Kaden," Alister greeted in surprise.

Kaden smiled before approaching the general. He stopped when the both of them were a couple feet away.

"How are things?" The yellow Lombax asked.

"Good. Ratchet and I are about to leave to find Dr. Nefarious. Your son stopped the doctor last time but I did not want him to go alone. I hope you do not mind."

"Not at all," Kaden replied, "I would rather someone be with him than not. You two always got along so well, despite the age difference and personality differences."

Azimuth laughed lightly, "Well, you and I are pretty different but are still best friends."

"True…"

Something seemed off about his friend today. It right words could not be thought of to describe this but something did not feel right.

"Are you alright Kaden?"

The other's eyes widened, "Yes, of course. Why?"

"I don't know. Something just seemed off but maybe it's just me."

"… Perhaps."

Before anything else was said, Kaden approached. Alister was greatly confused but did not move because he was unsure of what his friend was doing. Suddenly, though, he felt a hand cup his cheek. His face turned red.

"Kaden?!"

"Be careful." The yellow Lombax answered, "Don't make the choices I've made mean nothing."

"… What?"

No answer was given. Kaden backed away and left without a word. Alister felt… violated. He did not enjoy that at all. He was confused about the other's actions, but, hoped it would never happen again. Kaden didn't really do anything but he felt this almost angry feeling by it. He did not understand it at all.

"Hey Alister!"

The general turned to see Ratchet walking towards him with his stuff.

"Are you ready?"

The elder shook his head, "I apologize. I need to get my stuff together. I was messing with my ship."

"It's all good." The younger grinned. He then noticed the other's face was all red. "Are you feeling ok? Your face is all red."

Before anything else could be said or done, Ratchet reached up and brushed his fingers over Azimuth's cheeks.

"Your face is really warm."

Alister felt his face burn even more by this. It was odd, Kaden had done something similar just a moment ago and caused such a negative reaction. Ratchet, however, caused him to feel relaxed. He was enjoying the brushes over his face and even closed his eyes at one point.

The younger worried about the other and started to worry more when he noticed Alister closing his eyes and leaning into the touch. He started to blush and did not understand what was going on; both with the elder and himself.

He had believed last night to have felt something more for Alister but thought maybe he was just over thinking things. However, he was starting to feel strange again, especially seeing Alister act like this. He rubbed a thumb over one of the elder's cheeks.

They did this for a while longer before Azimuth opened his eyes and realized what he was doing. He pulled away.

"I'm sorry." The general replied.

"Why are you sorry?" the yellow Lombax asked, "I'm the one that kept going. I don't know what came over me. I'm sorry Alister."

Azimuth saw how Ratchet looked and realized how bad the younger felt.

"No need to apologize Ratchet. It was… nice." He mumbled the last part but it was loud enough for the younger to still hear it. "I will be right back with some of my belongings so we can head out.

They both felt greatly confused but did not question it further. Alister gathered some belongings before heading back outside. The two Lombaxes then hopped in the general's ship and headed off the look for the evil robot doctor.

*Hey guys! Sorry it took me so long to update. I've been so busy with school and everything. Anyway, thanks for reading and I hope you all enjoyed it. See you in the next chapter!


	6. Chapter 6

Ratchet and Clank: A Crack in Time fanfic

Genre: romance, adventure, some mystery, humor

Warnings: Male slash, boy/boy (you get the picture), the rating is T, cussing, violence

Pairing: Ratchet/Alister

Hope you all enjoy!

Only Time Will Tell Part 2

Ch. 6- Where to Begin?

Ratchet and Alister had just left Fastoon in search of Dr. Nefarious. The thing was, the younger of the two had been asked by his best friend, Clank, to look for the robot doctor and stop him but he was not even sure where to start. That is why he had asked Azimuth for his assistance, and thus, resulting in the elder joining the other on this adventure.

"Well, where should we start?"

The general answered, "Of what I know off the top of my head, Dr. Nefarious has raided or stolen from three planets so far."

"What do you mean by raided or stolen?" The younger asked.

"To be honest," Azimuth replied, "I am not sure if what he took was actually stealing or if he was simply taking materials from the planets."

Ratchet was still confused on one thing though. "What did the doctor take exactly?"

"Oh," Alister laughed slightly, "I forgot to tell you what he has taken.

"He has taken a material called Celtron."

A look just formed on the yellow Lombax's face before answering, "That doesn't clear anything up for me. I don't know what that is."

The general couldn't help but laugh a little which caused the other to glare at him.

"I do not know specifics but if I am thinking right, I believe it is one of the rarest metals in the galaxies, but it is also a strong metal. Other than that, though, I am unsure."

"I see," Ratchet mused, "So, of the three planets, which one are we heading to first?"

"I think that Kalebo III would be a good option to head to first."

Ratchet let himself think for a moment. He then spoke, "Isn't that where a Gadgetron Site is?"

"Yes."

"I think Clank and I went there," Ratchet replied. "Yeah, we did. We were in a hoover board race and won. It was during our first adventure when trying to stop Drek. We met the CEO to Gadgetron."

"An interesting guy isn't he?" Alister asked.

"Yeah. One thing I'm not sure on; why do you think this planet would be a good first choice to go to?"

"Well," the general began, "For one, that is the only planet I know the doctor has taken from. I know two others had this metal taken as well but I do not know what the actual planets were.

"Also, since Gadgetron is known for making weapons and gadgets, I am sure that someone at the facility knows about the materials and metals used and may have an idea on the more specific details of Celtron."

"If we know that, we may be able to figure out or at least get an idea on why Dr. Nefarious is taking this metal and where he may go next for it." Ratchet finished.

"Exactly."

Once this was established, the two Lombaxes continued towards Kalebo III. This planet was in a completely different universe so the trip took a long period of time. After the long wait, they did reach the planet's surface.

When landed, both Lombaxes exited the ship. Alister started to turn his head in every direction slowly, as if trying to take in the scenery. Ratchet noticed.

"What are you looking for Alister?"

The elder turned towards the younger when this was asked. He answered, "I am not looking for anything in particular. I was merely looking because it has been a long time since I have been here. Due to the research facility on Fastoon, we do a lot of work with companies such as Gadgetron and Megacorp. However, most work is done with Megacorp since it is the largest weapons corporation in the universe. Gadgetron is its closest competitor but it is not nearly as large as Megacorp so our deals with Gadgetron are much less often made."

Ratchet nodded, "Yeah, I can see why." He then decided to change the thought process. "So, do you want to see the HelpDesk Girl and see if she can get us in?"

"Actually, the CEO already knows we are coming so he is expecting us."

"Oh…"

Azimuth frowned, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Ratchet answered quickly, "How about you go ahead and talk with the CEO? I'm going to have a look around."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah."

The elder just nodded. They both went down the same path for a little bit before heading to a room that split the two up. Azimuth went to find the CEO and Ratchet went to find the HelpDesk Girl.

The younger knew that the other was going to ask about Celtron, but Ratchet was going because he wanted to know what the other two planets were that the Doctor went to. It could not hurt to have that extra piece of information, in fact, it may help.

There were some random grind rails here and there that the yellow Lombax had to worry about because for one, he could fall, and also, trains travelled on those so there was a chance he might get hit.

However, after careful precision and patience, Ratchet finally made it to where the robot girl was. He remembered last time he was here. Clank was with him. He had hoped the girl was going to be cute but ended up being a robot that hit on Clank, well, Clank hitting on her more than vice versa.

At any rate, the Lombax walked in. the robot girl had been sitting and looking at her computer. When footsteps were heard, she looked up and smiled before standing up.

"Hello," she greeted, "What can I do for you?"

While this was going on, Azimuth made his way to the entrance of the facility. Unlike the last time Ratchet was here and him just entering the building somehow, the elder actually went to the entrance and got authorization to enter.

He was led by one of the guards up to the CEO's office. It was up on the third or fourth floor. Alister had not really counted as they finally reached the floor. He was then led down the hall and the office was on the right.

Surprisingly, the door was open. Regardless, the general still felt it necessary to knock and did so. When told to come in, he did as told. The elder was greeted with a smile from a man with green lizard type skin.

"Hello Mr. Azimuth."

Both spent their time talking and learning more information. Both Lombaxes gained more knowledge that would help their search.

When done talking, Alister gave his thanks before leaving the facility. The trip seemed less short since he remembered more of where he was going than the first time. Returning to the ship, he realized that Ratchet had still not returned.

'Where is he?' Azimuth wondered, 'I hope he's not getting himself into trouble.'

"Thank you." Ratchet smiled, "You have been a great help."

"You're welcome." She smiled back, "Is that all you need?"

Ratchet answered, "Yeah. Thanks!"

He grinned before turning around and leaving. He was able to jump from where he was to a previous place he had been instead of having to deal with more grind rails. Because of this, it did not take him long to get back to the ship. He noticed that Alister had made it back first.

"Hey Alister," the younger greeted as he neared the ship.

Turning towards the owner of the greeting, a relived expression overcame the elder's face. "I am glad to see you are back."

Ratchet just grinned. He then asked, "So, did you find out anything?"

Leaning against the ship first, the elder then answered, "According to the CEO here, Celtron, as we both know, is a rare metal, but apparently, it's the rarest metal in the galaxy. It is a light metal with a light grey as its color. The metal is a good conductor for energy and electricity. The metal is only found in water. In other words, it's only on planets with large bodies of water where over half of the planet is covered such as the one we are currently one."

"That would explain the other two planets that the doctor went to." Ratchet replied before leanin against the ship next to Azimuth.

"You know the other planets he went to?"

"Yes. Dr. Nefarious also went to Damosel and Aquatos."

"Aquatos?" Alister questioned, "But why would that planet be questioned? He owns a part of it."

"Yeah but what if he dug for the metal on another part of the planet that wasn't his?"

"True…"

"So," Ratchet replied, "Where do you think we should head next?"

"I did not get any actual leads when I went to see the CEO. I suggest we go to Damosel. Though we would probably be just fine in Aquatos, we should probably still try to avoid it if we can since the doctor has a base there. At least an old on it is no longer in use."

The younger agreed. It probably was better to be safe since the doctor can be unpredictable sometimes and they didn't have a clue on what he was up to. Because of this, they got into the ship and headed to Planet Damosel.

*Hey guys! I final updated! Sorry about taking so long. Thanks for reading. I hope everyone enjoyed and I hope to see you in the next chapter!


	7. Chapter 7

Ratchet and Clank: A Crack in Time fanfic

Genre: romance, adventure, some mystery, humor

Warnings: Male slash, the rating is T, cussing, violence

Pairing: Ratchet/Alister, hints of Lawrence/Dr. Nefarious

Hope you all enjoy!

Only Time Will Tell Part 2

Ch. 7-Sanity?

Dr. Nefarious had been to three planets so far to look for a certain metal. This metal was one of the rarest but also of the most useful metals in the universe. The first planet they went to had given few leads except why the Doctor had gone to the exact planets that he had. The current destination now was Planet Damosel. This was also the next target in hopes of avoiding Planet Aquatos. When landing the ship, the two Lombaxes jumped out as soon as the ship was safely on the ground. They then turned their heads so their eyes could obtain more of their surroundings.

Ratchet, of course, had been here before. It was the second adventure he had been on with Clank. Megacorp had specifically hired him to get back an experiment that had been supposedly stolen. However, it was soon realized that was not the case and Ratchet joined forces with a female Lombax named Angela. It was also found out the Megacorp president was actually Captain Qwark in disguised. It was good that they had joined together and stopped everything that Qwark had started. This planet was one of the places visited when the Proto Pets had been on the market and started causing mayhem. Who knew how many of those things he had really fought, both here and in total.

Both Lombaxes walked away towards the cylinder room ahead of them. When they entered, they noticed that there were two ways to go. One was a grind rail path and the other was a transporter pad. Ratchet remembered there being quite a few grind rails in the city. Looking towards the transporter pad, he also remembered going to a neighborhood where civilians were scared and running for their lives just to get away from the vicious Proto Pets. It was awesome to think that none of that was taking place now. Those pets were vicious little assholes.

"Ratchet," the sound of his name took the younger out of his thoughts before turning to his companion.

"Yeah Alister."

"How about I go ahead and take the transporter pad and you take the grind rail?"

A nod was given before he answered. "That's fine with me.

"Now, we are looking for other places the Doctor may have gone, like on this planet or other planets as well, but should we try to find more information, like about the metal and what he could be using it for?"

"Yes, we definitely need to figure out what he may be doing with this metal. There's the possibility that he making some kind of machine or weapon with it, but the question is what device and what does he plan to use it for."

"True but I doubt we can figure all of that in one go unless we somehow kidnap his butler."

The general could not help but smirk at the sarcastic remark brought forth. Regardless, he decided not to say anything and replied, "I did not figure we could either but it does not hurt to try. Every little bit helps. Now, let's get going."

Both went to their agreed places before heading off to see what could be found.

*Location: Unknown*

Fingers tapped on a metal surface of a desk that was located in an office type setting but the room was darker than normal offices; the walls were a dark purple but the desk itself was bright silver. The desk was covered in messy piles of papers and discs. How anyone could keep this mess organized was a mystery. Somehow, though, the robot with tinted blue metal and a green clear cylinder of glass attached to his head managed to. It was probably due to the help of his trusty butler for locations and details to help keep his head on right, well, as right as he could ever be.

"Lawrence!" The one as Dr. Nefarious suddenly shouted out.

Not more than two seconds later did the door slide open for a robot that was shorter and more round than the Doctor. The butler known as Lawrence held no expression as he walked into one of the various offices that held Dr. Nefarious.

"What is it that you need sir?" the rounder bot inquired, "I did not think I would be called for at least another hour sir, for I have not even started the laundry yet, and your garments can take a while considering you always do your lab work in them, which may I say I wish you would…"

"Enough Lawrence!" the doctor yelled. He was fond of his butler due to his work capacity and loyalty but that did not mean he was not annoying every once in a while. It could be said that Lawrence felt the same towards Dr. Nefarious, only, instead of being fond of work capacity and loyalty, he was rather fond of the jokes and pranks he pulled on the Doctor. Though he did not notice the, half of the time, that did not mean he could not obtain personal enjoyment.

"What is progress of the experiment so far?"

Lawrence had been holding a thin electronic pad in his hands. Pressing certain buttons, he found the information the Doctor required and read him the information.

"So far everything is going according to plan. Only two things that may cause a problem; for one, a small amount of Celtron is needed to complete a few parts of the experiment. Then, we will also need a sufficient amount of energy to make the machine work. This type of machine will not simply work unless more energy is provided and if my calculations are correct, which they usually are, then we must find a stronger force of energy."

"Hm… I see" Dr. Nefarious mumbled to himself. He pressed a button underneath the desk that allowed for a visual transparent computer float in the middle of the room. Going to use it, however, the Doctor just spoke.

"Computer, bring up the files Lawrence saved for the experiment."

"Yes sir," was replied in a feminine tone before various files popped up on the screen.

"Really sir, if you could have just brought the information up, then why ask me here? I could have the laundry started by now."

As if ignoring the comment, Dr. Nefarious continued, "Computer, find a reliable energy source to guarantee the succession of this device."

"Yes sir."

While the computer started searching it's databases for the answers, Dr. Nefarious stood up from his seat before walking around his desk to then stand by the butler which was in front of the computer.

"I asked you here to ask your opinion. Once the search is done, I am sure there will be multiple results and considering I want to keep this as confidential as possible, I wanted your opinion to see what you thought would be best. In most cases, I do not care if others know small amounts of information but this particular subject is… tricky."

"Results found." The female voice pitched in before showing images and information on possible solutions.

"Odd…" The butler mused, "It appears the only option is to obtain these 'power cores'. I am sure we will only need one or two. However, that is subject to change since the information on the device so far is not, as some organics say, 'set in stone'."

"Yes…" Dr. Nefarious agreed, "For now, we will focus on finishing the device and then go from there to see if the results change or if the amount of power cores needed vary."

His back turned towards Lawrence as he headed back to his seat before sitting at his desk once more. He looked up at his butler and was then followed in silence.

"Very well sir. I shall let the employees on this project know to keep going as planned. If that is all you need, I shall be on my way."

The butler turned on his heel, but, a little too quickly, and result with having his back towards the other robot. He then walked to the door. However, before he could escape the Doctor's presence, he heard the Doctor's voice.

"Lawrence."

Stopping dead in his tracks in front of the door, he slowly turned to face his employer once more. "Yes sir?"

The feeling of worry filled both robots but for various reasons.

"I wonder if this device will help me," he mused out loud, though the statement was meant for himself then the loyal companion standing by the door. "It is odd how this has happened. And it makes absolutely no sense!" He practically yelled before jumping out of his seat.

This sudden movement surprised the butler greatly but he made no movements to show such thing.

"I do not understand. One day, everything is normal and makes sense, but then these strange events begin to occur. They make me question myself. I begin to wonder who I am. Sure, what I see in those flashes of mine are not too different from now, but things still are different."

Lawrence knew what he was referring to, for he had confided in the butler when this first started to happen. Though there were no details on when these 'flashes' occurred, that did not mean that the Doctor did not know more than he let on. Despite this, however, he did not push the subject and let his employer/creator tell him what he wished him to know and that be that.

"It starts to mess with me and I wonder what is real and what is not. I don't just see, but also feeling whatever is being felt in those stupid things. I know they must stop before I lose my sanity."

Usually, this would be a time where Lawrence would make a joke but he said nothing and the Doctor thought nothing of it.

"Go. Tell the workers they must continue with their work and I will let you know if anything changes. Keep me updated Lawrence." Dr. Nefarious just sounded suddenly exhausted.

"Yes sir."

Lawrence left not a moment later. Once the door slid closed and he was further down the hall, he stopped abruptly and placed a hand on the wall. His mind started to wondered towards the subject moments ago. The Doctor truly was starting to worry about what he may consider to be reality and not. Most thought he was crazy already but for anyone who knew more of the details of this project deepened their concerns over their employers' insanity. He would usually joke and would probably have worried secretly about this as well. However, not everything was as it seemed.

The hand currently hanging at his side started to form a fist in the feelings of uncertainty and nervousness. He could not question the Doctor when he felt he was not too different himself. He had also started to see 'flashes' that made no sense and seemed too real. Yet, nothing was said to the Doctor. Sure, Dr. Nefarious had his own to worry about, but some of the images shown in his head made the butler question if saying a word would be a smart idea or not.

Lawrence feared what this project may bring. If his flashes along with the one Dr. Nefarious had were somehow intertwined, then this brought even more of the feeling of fear to the butler. If somehow these were connected and somehow true, then that could mean that him and the doctor were more than just employer and employee, and this thought scared Lawrence greatly, though he would never admit to such feelings.

Pushing those thoughts aside, he pushed off the wall before continuing to let the others know what was to be done for the project presently.

*Hey guys! Thanks for reading! Sorry I took so long to write this. I tried a bit of a different writing style with this, not too different but a bit. I hope you guys liked the chapter. See you in the next chapter! :3


	8. Chapter 8

Ratchet and Clank: A Crack in Time fanfic

Genre: romance, adventure, some mystery, humor

Warnings: Male slash, the rating is T, cussing, violence

Pairing: Ratchet/Alister, hints of Lawrence/Dr. Nefarious

Hope you all enjoy!

Only Time Will Tell Part 2

Ch. 8- Tip

The results of the search proved unsatisfactory, for not hints were found on the whereabouts of Dr. Nefarious' next hit for thievery. When both Lombaxes knew of this, they left and headed back towards the ship. It was quite a surprise that both made it back at almost the same time. However, this was a positive since they would not have to worry about the other returning safely. Both entered the ship right then before Alister left the planet's surface and headed back into the dark stretches of the universe.

"So, looks like Aquatos is our last choice," Ratchet voiced his thoughts out loud.

"Unfortunately, yes. If we don't find something there then we may be stuck until we can figure something out." Ratchet nodded in agreement. "The question is where to go. Where Dr. Nefarious went was all water and we do not have the proper equipment to explore that area. At least on the other planets, the mineral was taken off land that had already been dug out by underwater miners. The mineral on Aquatos was dug up by the Doctor himself on land that wasn't his."

"Well, maybe we could check out his base there."

A confused expression overcame the elder's face. "I thought you destroyed it."

"Yeah but not all of it. It's been years anyway. I'm sure Dr. Nefarious has fixed it up and stuff by now."

"That is possible and is probably our best bet to finding anything. If his base is back in use then we may be able to get extra information as well on him and perhaps what he is up to."

Ratchet grinned, "Sweet! Sounds like a plan." He then leaned towards the screen and tapped a few buttons below to put in the coordinates of the base.

"You remember it."

"Well, I kind of looked through some of my old stuff before leaving Fastoon in case I would need any of my old information of when I last faced Nefarious."

Azimuth smiled after hearing this. "Great thinking Ratchet. That was a good idea on your part."

Hearing the praise caused a grin to form once more on the younger's face along with a slight blush. Sure, he has heard praise here and there from others, even his family, about his accomplishments, but none seemed to matter as much as the ones from Alister. He didn't know why but one compliment from Alister meant more the twenty from his father or ten from his mother. Anything from the general meant much to Ratchet, which, he was never really sure why, but it has always been that way.

The trip to Aquatos would take a little bit and exhaustion started to make its way through the yellow Lombax. Slowly taking over, his head started to fall forward a little before quickly jerking up so he would not bang his head on the dash board. A chuckle escaped the elder at the display.

"How about you lean on me Ratchet before you hurt yourself?" Alister grinned in light humor.

Ratchet looked slightly confused by the gesture. Not because he wouldn't do anything nice but because he was not usually generous when it came to giving way to his personal space being violated. Of course, he did used to do that to Azimuth a lot when he was younger.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. Come here."

Though the saying was meant to emphasize that it was alright to nap on his shoulder, to use as a pillow, the comment of 'come here' made a blush cross over the younger's face for some reason. Trying to push the thoughts aside, he scooted closer until he was able to lay his head on Alister's shoulder comfortably.

At the time, the general thought it would be a good idea for Ratchet to rest comfortably since they had a long way to go; although, most others, probably even his father, he would not allow such closeness. However, that thought had not crossed his mind until he felt the head on his shoulder and heat rise up in his cheeks. Why did he allow this? It's like the same feeling and question of why he had let Ratchet touch his face in such a caressing way and enjoyed it when he had despised the same motion from Kaden moments beforehand.

"Are you comfortable?" Azimuth asked quietly.

Both blushed more now. Ratchet looked up to see Alister staring at him, most likely waiting for an answer to his question. The younger was sure he was red now but nothing was said of it.

Something, some feeling then took over Ratchet. He lifted his head and scooted closer. Confusion washed over Azimuth's face. Looking at Ratchet who had half lidded eyes and flushed cheeks caused this confusion. However, the elder himself felt frozen. Unable to move, he watched as Ratchet slowly leaned.

Tension could be felt rising up in Alister but that was not all that was felt. There was this feeling of longing as well. This want. He wanted this. Why? Why would he want to do this with Ratchet?

His thoughts instantly broke when he felt lips on his own. With these scattered thoughts, all he could really focus on was Ratchet. Not removing his lips, one of hands searched until he found the autopilot switch and turned it on.

Once that was taken care of, Alister slowly brought his arms forward until they wrapped themselves loosely around Ratchet.

Both of them had been very still during the kiss but once the arms were felt around his sides, Ratchet took this opportunity to press closer and deepen the kiss. A light groan was heard from the elder's throat which caused the younger to smirk carelessly in the kiss.

It quickly faded as the kiss continued. Unsure of what to do after the movement of his arms, Azimuth was pretty still during the kiss but did follow when Ratchet made some movements or changes like when he deepened the kiss, which did not bother Ratchet in the slightest since this meant he could lead them.

It was when their lips touched that Ratchet felt some of his questions were then explained. Why he did this. Why he always wanted to be with the other and impress him. Why he preferred doing anything with him over others, including his family. He liked him. There was this strong attraction he felt towards Alister that he was so blind to and only now did it make perfect sense. Or did he just, try to run away from the fact? Did he fear what would happen and even now of what would come of this afterwards?

Both slowly pulled away for breath soon after these thought occurred, but still stared intently on one another. Neither spoke, for they were unsure of what to say.

"We have arrived to Planet Aquatos."

The notification from the ship pulled both of them away from the awkwardness of the situation and back onto the task at hand.

The autopilot was turned off and Alister took back the wheel to do the landing himself. While taking care to find a perfect place to land, he noticed that Ratchet stayed right where he was from when they had kissed. He was slightly surprised he had not moved back but said nothing of it.

Finally landing on the landing deck of outside of Dr. Nefarious' base, he turned the ship off and opened the hatch.

"Alright, we're here."

Ratchet only nodded before both jumped out of the ship. Looking around, the setup was a bit different than the last time Ratchet was here. No doubt that some remodeling and security updates had been made since his previous visit.

"Alright Ratchet. Since there are three routes, I suggest the best form of action is for us to split up for two of them and meet back here to take the third path together to make sure the other returns safely from the first route."

"That sounds good," Ratchet nodded in agreement.

Both split up right then to take their separate pathways. While going, the Lombaxes knew to be on their best guard and be ready for anything, since they were unsure of what to really expect. However, this proved slightly difficult since thoughts of the affair that occurred in the ship still lingered in both minds.

For Ratchet, he wondered more of what Alister thought since he was pretty sure he understood where he stood on the matter. After all, having feelings for him made perfect sense. However, the confusing part about the whole ordeal was how much familiarity he felt from the encounter, like he had done this several times before, which also helped it feel so natural as well.

However, even with these thoughts, it was not as difficult to avoid security lights and lasers for him as he thought it would be. Surprisingly, though he knew the base was running again because of all the lights and lasers, he was surprised by the lack of guards around. He had not seen a single one on his path. Though, the path did not last long before he found the end.

For Alister, it was not as simple. He knew he had always taken a liking to Ratchet, perhaps more so at time than he should have at times, but he always thought it was because he was the son of his best friend. Now, he began to question what he really thought of the younger Lombax and his morals. It was seen as unacceptable to be with one of the same gender when you are in the Guard such as himself. Not only that, but the one he felt confusion for was not just anyone but Ratchet, Kaden's son; his best friend's only son. This was going to be a problem…

However, with more pressing matters, he tried to push the thoughts aside as much as possible while traveling through his route. Security was not extremely tight, to his surprise, for no security devices were around, only guards. Which, the problem with this was that the guards that did appear in a large room of all glass walls and were all together.

When walking into the room, he noticed this too late and knew he would have to fight them all without throwing them into the walls. Great…

Seeing him, they all charged at once. Luckily, there was only five so it should not be too bad. The problem was, of course, the room, and the size of the guards. They were not exactly small.

However, becoming general meant that he had a few tricks up his sleeves. At first he spent time dodging attacks, which worked out quite nicely since two guards hit each other and knocked the other out cold. Now there was only three left.

Knowing that dodging wasn't going to work a second time, his wrench was then taken out. Turning it on, blue electrical currents could be seen at the sharp points of his weapon.

He then charged towards the guards. Running, the first two guards charged at him as well until they thought they were close enough to hit the Lombax. Both had metal clubs as weapons.

One aimed for Alister's head while the other aimed for his lower legs. Swinging at the same time and making contact with these places would have been a good technique, if it had worked, for Azimuth had seen it coming, and surprising all, he ducked his head while jumping through both weapons. He barely had enough room to fit through both, but there were not many options since did not have time to slow down by the time he caught on to their plan.

Landing on the other side, he raised his wrench high before striking in a slanted vertical direction, thrashing one's head and the other's torso. Both flew back and slammed onto the ground; knocked out.

There was one guard left. However, no fight was needed, for he flew the scene the moment eye contact was made with the enemy.

Alister could not help but laugh slightly as he made his way to the wall opposite of where he entered. Walking up, he saw a door. The problem though was that the door was locked. A code was needed to unlock it.

Meanwhile, Ratchet found himself in a similar room, only, it was a dead end. The only place left to go was where he came in through. There was a taller cylinder shape in the center of the room. It looked oddly familiar as he approached it. Standing in front of it, he noticed a yellow button on one side and pressed it.

Suddenly, a small flap opened to reveal two eyes in a dark space. Ratchet instantly knew who it was, though he was surprised to see him in the same area again.

"Well well, if it isn't my favorite customer." The mysterious figure replied. This was the guy that Ratchet bought some illegal weapons from. He never planned on telling Alister that…

"I never expected to see you here again."

"Yeah, well, you gotta return to places every once in a while. Ya know?" He responded in his sneaking, slithering voice. "Which I could say the same about you kid. Didn't we do business here a few years back?"

"Yeah, we did."

Ratchet then heard his communicator going off. Lifting his hand up, he pressed a button so he could hear the call.

"Ratchet?"

"Hey Alister. How's it going?"

"Alright. I ran into a few guards but they were no trouble. However, I am stuck at a locked door."

"That's weird. I'm stuck too but I'm at a complete dead end." Ratchet replied.

"Let me guess," the dealer pitched in, "You both took the outer routes instead of the middle one, right?"

Ratchet looked from his watch to the eyes in the cylinder. "Yeah."

"Who are you talking to Ratchet?" Azimuth asked, for he could only hear voices. It was not on video mode.

"A friends of mine," the younger answered hesitantly, "Him and I have done some business."

"A weird place to do business," the general mused, "But I'll take your word for it."

"Well, it sounds like then that your friend took the passage to Dr. Nefarious' office."

Eyes from the younger widened, "Really?"

"Yeah, and if so, then I know the code."

"You know it?" Alister asked through the watch, "Could you give it to us then?"

"Hmm… Well, perhaps, but at a small fee."

This did not shock Ratchet at all, for he has dealt with this guy before. Paying the fee, the guy then gave them the code, which Alister put in as he was told. The door opened soon after. Letting Ratchet know, he shut off his communicator and entered the room.

"Thanks for the code."

"Don't mention it. I gotta ask though, why are you here? Looking for the good ol' Doctor again?"

"Yeah actually, I am. Hopefully my partner will find what we are looking for in his office."

"Doubt it."

Ratchet asked, "Why?"

"Cause he hasn't been here in a while. Though, he may find information on what he had been working on."

"What do you mean?"

"Before leaving, he started this big project. From what I heard, the Doc was acting a light loopy; wasn't himself. He started some project to help either figure out the problem or find a solution. Perhaps both. That's about all I know about it."

"So, you wouldn't happen to know where he would be going, would you?"

"Actually, I may have an idea. He had a list of four planets that he was going to go to for some mineral. I dunno the mineral but I did catch the planets before he left. One of them being here. The other three were Kalebo III, Damosel, and Mukow."

"Mukow?" Ratchet asked. Though it made since because that was an aquatic planet so finding the mineral there would be more probable than other water planets. But Mukow?! "You can't be serious."

"I am dead serious. That was one of the planets."

Ratchet felt panic slightly rise in him. "But that's an overly populated planet. It's known for all the tourist attractions and hotels. It's known for holding the some of the universe's best festivals and entertainment. Surely he wouldn't be so stupid as to go there."

"Well, he has done stupider things in the past." Ratchet then looked and stared at him. "What?! I do watch the news you know."

A sigh escaped the Lombax before he replied further. "Thanks for the help."

"Hey, gotta keep my favorite customer coming back."

Ratchet just rolled his eye before going back to the ship. Of course, this also meant he had to dodge security again, but that wasn't bad considering how easy it was the first time and now doing it again. It did not even take him five minutes to get back.

While Ratchet waited at the ship, Alister went through some of the files and such that were cluttered along the room. Most of it was blueprints of the place. The base had a lot of reconstruction it was supposed to do but for some reason, it was all put on pause. The third passage that they were supposed to take would be a dead end, for it was supposed to be a room with some submarines to travel to the other part of the base but it had not been built. So all they would find is a hall with a dead end.

However, what he did find of interest was called the Mind Operation. There were not many details but from the sounds of it, it sounded like Dr. Nefarious started a project to build a complex machine that would not simply read the mind, but the inner subconscious, to find forgotten thoughts and perhaps thought that were not our own.

Alister was unsure of what to think of that last part but decided best to bring the file so Ratchet could look and see what he thought. Though the machine itself did not sound dangerous, using it on others to find out their deepest, darkest secrets could extremely dangerous.

He worried about this but for some reason, deep down, he had this nagging feeling that it wasn't really going to be used for that. Not only that, but he felt this unknown fear, like something was going to happen if it was built. He wasn't sure what to think.

However, he decided to push those worries away for now as he made his way back to the ship.

*Hey everyone! Sorry about taking a while to update. I can't believe how long this chapter is, but I'm excited. I'm trying to add more details and stuff to my chapters to make them better. I hope I am doing a decent job at it. I hope you all liked it and thanks for reading!


	9. Chapter 9

Ratchet and Clank: A Crack in Time fanfic

Genre: romance, adventure, some mystery, humor

Warnings: Male slash, the rating is T, cussing, violence

Pairing: Ratchet/Alister, Kaden/Alister (just for the chapter)

Hope you all enjoy!

Only Time Will Tell Part 2

Ch. 9- Dark Thoughts

Rewind Time

"This is the end! You have nowhere to run Lombax!"

What was said was true. Looking out from the cliff side was a roaring sea waiting to engulf any who entered its stormy presence. The Lombax currently looking out on that turned away from it to face his opponent.

The one in his way was tiny creature in a giant, walking robot suit that was at least twice the size of the Lombax standing before it.

Beads of sweat formed along his brow as adrenaline rushed through his veins. Taking out his weapon, he readied his wrench for battle.

"Any last words?" the smaller creature in the suit bellowed out, "Before I destroy you like I did your home?!"

This made the Lombax's teeth clench in hatred. However, it switched to a smirk in an instant before he answered, "Only this Tachyon, that if I don't kill you, then someone will."

"HA!" Tachyon roared out in laughter, "You really believe that load of nonsense that just came out of your mouth?!"

"I bet my life on it," Kaden responded rather easily.

"Well then," the smaller creature grinned while taking a step forward with his robot, "Let's just test that then. Shall we?"

One of the giant claws then rose before striking down in one swift motion. Booted feet skidded to the left to avoid impact. There was enough room to move around but not due to being so close to the cliff's edge.

More adrenaline ran through Kaden's body as he tried to form a coherent plan of escape. Claws kept rising in the air before striking down at the Lombax. He had been able to successfully dodge all the attacks from going in a side to side motion. However, this was also making him back step more towards the cliff's edge that he so dearly wanted to avoid.

Once feeling the heel of his foot slip off the edge, Kaden knew he was in trouble. Looking up at Tachyon, new fear gripped the Lombax, suddenly feeling the closeness of the reality of death.

"This is the end. Now you must die!"

A claw rose once more. Kaden had nowhere to run. Fear clenched at his heart and lungs as he felt his insides tighten and his breathing shorten. The final attack then struck down.

However, before seeing the end, eyes shot open before the rest of the body followed in reaction when sitting straight up. Sweat covered his entire body and his breaths came out as pants. Eyes were still wide in fear as he slowly started to remember where he was and what was going on.

Sliding to the side of the bed, Kaden let his feet dangle over the carpet floor. He was just in his own home on Fastoon. Letting his eyes rest on the floor, they silently followed the random black swirls that occupied the peach color so it would not be so plain. This usually helped him relax a bit since he could at least watch the following of the designs instead of the flashing images of his latest nightmare.

Percival Tachyon, he was a Cragmite he met years ago, before Ratchet was even born. He had even been around when his son came into the universe. He always gave Kaden negative feelings. For some reason, he had never trusted the tiny creature. It could partially be due to the Great War when Cragmites were the Lombaxes' greatest enemy. Tachyon had just disappeared one day and no one had thought of him since. Even he had not until these strange dreams started and Tachyon was always trying to kill him in them.

Pushing the thoughts aside, Kaden laid back down before pulling the covers back over his body. Shutting his eyes once more, he attempted at sleep and hoped it would end with better results.

Sleep came quicker than he expected but he was far from complaining on it. This dream was in a way similar, but different at the same time.

It was an actual memory instead of just a strange dream that felt real, for this did occur. He was watching a scene from the side of the house. The scene taking place was between his son Ratchet and his best friend Alister.

Both were very happy, it seemed, because both Lombaxes had genuine smiles that were given to one another. Kaden felt again the happiness that they both got along so well, yet the jealousy of it. It was as if they had something, that Ratchet had something, which Kaden himself had never been able to obtain.

Ratchet finally left. Knowing he was fully gone, Kaden made his presence known to the other. For some reason, negative feelings of jealousy and hostility rose within the yellow Lombax at the thought of the scene that just took place, but he tried to shove those aside to greet his friend.

"You both seem pretty close," Kaden responded to grab his friend's attention away from where Ratchet had disappeared to only moments ago.

Alister turned sharply in surprise since he seemed to not have expected anyone. "Oh, hello Kaden."

Kaden smiled before approaching his friend. He stopped when he was only a couple feet away. A good distance between them still but they were much closer than previously.

"How are things?" the yellow Lombax then asked. Though he may feel strangely to the closeness between Azimuth and Ratchet, that did not mean he didn't worry or care about them both.

"Good," the general grinned, "Ratchet and I are about to leave to find Dr. Nefarious. Your son stopped the doctor last time but I did not want him to go alone. I hope you do not mind."

'Alone? I wonder about his friend Clank…' However, instead of asking on it, Kaden answered, "Not at all. I would rather someone be with him than not…" he paused a moment in thought, which Azimuth noticed, before he continued, "you two always got along so well, despite the age difference and personality differences."

A light filled laugh was then heard from the general before he replied, "Well, you and I are pretty different but are still best friends."

Something stirred in Kaden when he heard this. This talk of best friends somehow made him… what's the word? Angry? Depressed? Maybe a mixture of the two? He was unsure. These thoughts were running through the yellow Lombax's mind as he replied, "True…"

Alister must have noticed the change because he then looked at his friend worriedly along with asking, "Are you alright Kaden?"

However, Kaden widens his eyes to pretend he doesn't know what he means.

"Yes, of course. Why?"

"I don't know. Something just seemed off but maybe it's just me."

Again, something stirred in the yellow Lombax. He was unsure of what he was feeling, but he felt like wanting to take action. He wanted to wait no longer. Strange, that last thought had not occurred… right?

"Perhaps."

Kaden then approached his best friend. A confused expression grew on the general's face but he did not move. He was probably just unsure of what his friend's intentions were. That's ok. He didn't need to know… yet.

Standing extremely close, almost uncomfortably so, Kaden raised one of his hands up to cup one of the other's cheeks. Azimuth's face went red in a second.

"Kaden?!"

Kaden gave him a stern look but was yet filled with concern. "Be careful. Don't make the choices I've made mean nothing."

A small amount of confusion then ran through the yellow Lombax. Yes he did have some feelings for his friend and that was partially what caused problems between Cara and Kaden, even if she never knew he liked someone else, she knew his love was not all there. If not for the strict views on same gender couples, then Kaden would have gone after Alister, easily.

However, when saying that about the choices he made, it felt that there was more meaning to it than even Kaden himself realized.

Alister was also greatly confused, which could easily be seen by his expression and wide eyes.

"… What?"

This was the part of the dream where Kaden was supposed to back away and leave. This was not the case as he continued to stand there while holding his cheek softly.

The strange feeling again stirred in him and suddenly made him feel more… daring. Having no fear, Kaden leaned in to Alister.

Eyes of the white Lombax widened as their lips touched softly. Kaden himself felt surprised, but only for a moment. The feeling returned a moment later and stronger than ever as he moved his hand from the cheek to the back of the head. This made holding him still easier as he deepened the kiss.

A groan rumbled from Alister to vibrate into Kaden's mouth when their lips were more open during the kiss. A smirk formed on Kaden's face.

His other hand then traveled slowly towards Azimuth's back; making feathery swirls and touches through the stretchy fabric on the stomach, and then side and hip before finally making it to the lower back. When the travel was complete, Kaden tightened his arm to pull the general closer.

Alister hesitantly moved his hands to lightly rest on Kaden's sides. He seemed unsure of what to do in this situation, which was perfectly okay with Kaden; then he could lead. More swirls and feathery touches were applied all along the lower back.

Again, this caused Alister to groan quietly. Kaden took this advantage to slither his tongue into the other's mouth. Exploration was indeed what he was planning, but he also wanted to have some fun too.

The yellow Lombax's tongue first tickled the roof of Alister's mouth. This caused the general to shiver lightly from the sensitive touch. A silent chuckle rumbled from Kaden before he decided to play with Azimuth tongue.

Tongues swirled all around the inside of the white Lombax's mouth in fun. However, this did not last too long before a hiss was heard and a sharp metallic taste was present.

Pulling away slightly, Kaden asked, "Are you alright?"

A nod was given before Alister answered, "Yes. I just nicked my tongue on my teeth. It's no big deal."

That feeling, that strange sensation suddenly flowed through Kaden at a rapid speed. Closing his eyes momentarily, he then opened them. Oddly, his eyes were not green anymore. They were red.

Looking at Alister, he smiled slightly. "Come here. I'll take care of you."

Grabbing around the collar of the suit, Kaden pulled Alister into a surprise kiss. The taste of blood was still clearly there by the taste. Slipping his tongue into the other's mouth, he slowly licked all around the gums and teeth, making sure not to miss any spot, and oddly, enjoying that metallic taste.

Realizing this, both fear and excitement rose in the yellow Lombax as he continued to explore the general's mouth.

Fear taking over, eyes snapped open and he sat straight up once more. Fear still gripped him, but for reasons much different than from the previous dream of death.

Jumping out of bed, he ran into the hall and down a few doors. Entering the bathroom, he looked right into the mirror. The window present in the tiny room provided some light, but not much.

With that light, his eyes were the color of blood red. His eyes widened in panic and fear as he suddenly switched the light on. However, looking back into the mirror with proper light, he saw that his eyes were emerald green; their usual color.

Sighing in relief, Kaden decided he would try to sleep once more. It was only three a clock in the morning so he may as well try to get a few more hours of sleep.

*Hey everyone! Thanks for reading so far! I thought I would make this a bit interesting and add some of Kaden's thoughts and struggles. I do have a reason for this ;)

As for the make out scene, I didn't _need_ it but I actually wanted to write one for these two for a while and thought that this was the perfect time. Anyway, thank you all for viewing, reading, and hopefully enjoying. Let me know what you think. See you next time!

P.S. Sorry about taking a while for updates. School has been so busy for me. See you soon. :)


	10. Chapter 10

Ratchet and Clank: A Crack in Time fanfic

Genre: romance, adventure, some mystery, humor

Warnings: Male slash, the rating is T, cussing, violence

Pairing: Ratchet/Alister

Hope you all enjoy!

Only Time Will Tell Part 2

Ch. 10- Dog Fight

On the space ship, both Lombaxes on board sat in complete silence as the older of the two drove them through the black stretches of the universe. They wanted to talk; needed to really, but were unsure of what to really say. Sure, they needed to discuss what was found on Aquatos, that was understood, but other things remained in both of their minds as well that neither refused to bring up on the account of confusion, uncertainty, and especially fear, even if they would never admit it.

"So, your friend said we have to go to Mukow?" Alister piped in after a while, more for conversation than actual curiosity since he knew Ratchet told him on Aquatos.

"Yeah, that was one of the planets that Dr. Nefarious was going to go to I guess." Ratchet responded, "It was the fourth planet he listed that had Celtron on it. Unfortunately, Nefarious would actually be stupid enough to go to an extremely popular planet for just a stupid mineral."

The last sentence was mumbled in aggravation but the general still heard it and chuckled a little. "It cannot be helped. Dr. Nefarious may be smart in working with machines but that means nothing in the ways of common sense."

The younger couldn't help but to join in with Alister in laughter. That indeed was true. Neither could deny that Dr. Nefarious was not one with common sense. Usually, it was his butler who made up for the loss of common sense that Dr. Nefarious misses.

The laughter died down and both went back to silence. It was quite unnerving how the silence seemed to make both sit in unease. However, they could not be this quiet forever. They both knew this. Azimuth then braved himself to finally speak.

"Ratchet. We need to talk about a few things."

"Okay…" the younger responded in discomfort.

"Well, before I go into what I happened last time we were aboard this ship," the general replied while feeling his cheeks redden slightly, which the younger took note of. "We need to discuss what I found in Nefarious' office."

The yellowish ears perked at that. They had not spoken of what each found yet due to the remembrances of their last encounter in these very seats.

"I looked through Dr. Nefarious' files while in his office. Most were of blue prints of the place. However, the prints were on construction of the place."

Confusion crossed over the younger's face. "Construction? It looked like the place has been abounded for a while now."

"Yes," Alister agreed, "When looking through the prints, I saw a report on it. Basic details were that all construction plans were to be on pause until further notice.

"I then found reports on some project called Mind Machine. From what I could find, which was very little, was that this machine was made to go into someone's mind and even subconscious to find information, such as lost memories."

Reaching down by the door, the elder pulled out a file that he almost forgot he grabbed that talk about the Mind Operation. "Here's the file I found on it that may help explain a few things."

Taking it, Ratchet looked over it to see what he could find. It really was like what Alister said. It was a complex machine made to read the mind and inner subconscious. The part that confused the yellow Lombax was when he read the part about finding memories stored there, whether they belong to the owner or not, that might be present.

"Is this saying that Dr. Nefarious can see if there are fake memories in our brains with this machine?"

"An interesting way of putting it, but yes," Azimuth nodded.

"This could explain the Doctor's behavior." Ratchet thought out loud.

Eyes filled with confusion. "What are you talking about?"

"When I talked to that guy I knew at Aquatos, he said something about Nefarious building a machine because he was acting "loopy" and was building it to either find the problem, fix it, or possibly both."

"Hmmm…" Alister hummed in thought. He had thought the machine might be used to find secrets to use against others, but, what if he was trying to find secrets of his own; perhaps lost memories during the transfer between human and robot. He did not know but a cold feeling went up his spine at the sudden fear of what not only might this machine do for the Doctor but what the results might do to others.

"Despite what he might be trying to do, we must take caution. Who knows what he has planned." Ratchet nodded in agreement.

Silence then fell over them again. Azimuth knew they needed to talk about earlier but was unsure of how to approach. He felt nervous and fear; though was unsure of why they seemed so strong. It had to be discussed nonetheless.

"Didn't you want to talk about why we kissed?" Ratchet cut in.

Amber eyes widened. Looking over to the younger, he saw Ratchet looking straight forward with his arms crossed. His face was expressionless but his eyes told all. He was readying himself for rejection.

"I did… Ratchet, why _did_ you kiss me?"

Nervousness flooded through the younger Lombax, but regardless, he planned to answer. He would have no regrets.

"I kissed you because I like you." Ratchet answered simply. "I have for a while. I just never really addressed it." Green eyes looked into amber ones before he continued. "Now, the question remaining is, why did you kiss me back?"

Perhaps it was too straightforward, but the younger wanted an answer. He really did like the other for a long time, he was always just too afraid to admit it, especially to himself.

"I…" He was unsure of how to answer. At the time, he felt this sense of need and longing when holding the other in his arms. He had never quite felt that way with anyone else. Uncertainty filled his mind on how to answer but Ratchet remained quiet while he waited for the other to answer him. The feeling sank deeper when he thought of his home world ways and of Kaden himself. However, he tried to push those thoughts aside so he could truly think about the question.

Before doing anything else, Alister turned on the autopilot so he would not have to focus on the outside space but only what was happening here and now.

"I am not completely sure," he began honestly; "I felt this strong feeling for you right when it happened. I felt this longing that I never experienced with anyone else before. I am unsure of why but it was there regardless." A light humorless laugh then left the elder while he placed a hand on a part of his face and fingers reached up to the top of his head. "I do not know why I am evening saying these things. None of it should have happened. It is not accepted in our world and never will be. And you are half my age, and Kaden's son as well. I should not be thinking this way with my best friend's son."

Ratchet knew exactly what he meant. Sure, he had dated a few girls himself but never had he felt what he did with Alister over the course of a few minutes.

Suddenly, without the older noticing, the yellow Lombax scooted considerably closer. It wasn't until Ratchet spoke that the general saw that they were almost touching.

"You liked it, didn't you?" was asked as emerald eyes stared deeply into the other's. This made the elder's heart quicken slightly.

"… Yes Ratchet, I did." He answered honestly.

"And I liked it. What you described to me is exactly what I felt towards you when we did this." He replied, "I don't care about age and I certainly don't care if you're my dad's best friend. I also don't give a shit about everyone else on the planet and whether it follows their ways or not."

"Ratchet, you shouldn't talk like that about your home." This suddenly made Ratchet feel extreme anger.

"Well, I don't care!" He practically yelled now which made the other stop talking from the surprise. "I go out and have saved planets and galaxies all the time and they could care less about it! Yeah, they might be thankful for that day but the next, it's like it never happened to them. So why should I care if one planet dislikes me because of my relations with a man?"

Alister was stunned into silence. He knew Ratchet and knew he liked to go out and save other planets; to be a hero. But most really didn't give him much for his efforts and troubles, so Azimuth could not really blame Ratchet for feeling the way he did but why did he feel so hostile towards his home planet? Of course, it never seemed like he felt fully connected with some of the ways as he had explained to Alister at one point. Maybe this explained that insight a bit more.

Sighing, Ratchet continued, "I do not expect you to have an answer yet. Please though, don't just ignore what I told you. I'm serious with what I'm feeling. I know it might not be easy because of the factors you mentioned, but also because you're on the council as well. I do care about you and I mean that by a lot."

"I know Ratchet," Azimuth smiled. "I won't just ignore what you told me. I will think it through and try to figure it out. We can work together to figure this out."

Ratchet smiled back, "Okay.

"One thing to keep in mind though, when you were telling me about what you were feeling during the kiss, the longing and need, don't think about it as bad. Try to figure that out and go from there. That's what I had to do to figure out that I liked you." The younger admitted.

Funny, Alister usually gave Ratchet advice. Now it was the other way around. It had to be that way sometimes the elder guessed.

"So, you're telling me that kissing me helped you figure it out completely?"

"Yes." Was answered with no hesitation. "Maybe another could help you." The younger grinned with secret intent hidden in his eyes.

"I do not think that is…"

"Mukow now in sight. We will be landing shortly." The ship identified; cutting off the white Lombax.

"We'll talk about it later," Ratchet responded when they entered the planet's atmosphere. No reply came from the elder but he knew they were not finished in their discussion. Many things were uncertain for him; for both of them he liked to think.

Settling on the ground, the pair jumped out of the ship to have a look around. The skies were dark and stormy as usual. Despite this being the normal weather, it still somehow managed to attract tourists from all over with its festivals, such as the fighting festival that was held here a few years back. Ratchet had gone and did quite well.

The ship itself was landed outside of the capitol city. The entering and exiting of the planet would be easier for the two out in the forested areas than in the city limits. Both headed towards the city.

The walk was not far from the ship, the arrival to the city itself struck them both as odd. It was completely dead silent and not a soul could be seen on the streets or in any of the buildings through the windows. The reason this was found strange was because there was always someone around, whether it be at an event, setting it up, or tearing it down. The quiet was making both Lombaxes feel uneasy so both took out their wrenches in preparation for anything that may come. As their feet stepped on the black pavement on the roads, they looked in every direction to see if perhaps something was missed.

Both stopped, however, when a third set of quick moving feet were heard heading straight towards them but from behind. Turning, they saw a tiny creature with pale skin and antennas running towards them. He stopped once he made it to them.

"What are you two still doing here?" He panted in a frantic type manner.

"What do you mean? We just got here." Ratchet pointed out. "Why would we not be here?"

An aggravated sigh escaped the tiny creature before he replied, "Well, you shouldn't be here because there is an evacuation taking place now as we currently speak."

"Evacuation? What for?" Alister asked.

"You've got to be kidding me!" He yelled in irritation, "You don't even know!?"

"What part of, 'we just got here', don't you understand?" The younger Lombax asked with sarcasm thick in his voice.

A sigh was heard from the stranger once more but this time one of defeat. "Dr. Nefarious has come here and is currently going through the ocean that surrounds this island. He said that if anyone got in his way, he would not be afraid to kill every living being in this city. We are trying to remove everyone from here."

Azimuth asked, "How many people are left?"

"Well, you two are the only ones I have found so I think you two are it."

A grinned formed on Ratchet's face. "Alright then. Let's go stop Nefarious."

"What!? Are you two crazy?!" Was asked but the question was lost as the two Lombaxes left the stranger to find their intended target.

On the island, there were several beaches around. However, there was only one large popular beach out of the many where many of the events were held at due to its location by being in the city limits. That was most likely where the Doctor was.

Arriving, their suspicions were answered. Robot ninjas were present along with a giant machine that was partially in the water; most likely a drill digging through the rock and coral parts underneath the ocean. Dr. Nefarious was seen standing on the beach while holding a rectangular flat device which was assumed to be a remote control in the form of touch screen pad.

"Dr. Nefarious!" Ratchet yelled once both Lombaxes entered the beach, "This ends now!"

The robot turned towards them. A devilish grin formed on his lips. "Well, well, if it isn't Ratchet. I was wondering if you were ever going to catch up."

He then noticed that Clank was not with him. How odd… "I see Clank isn't with you. What? Did he finally grow sick of you?"

"Why Clank isn't here is none of your business." Ratchet snarled, yet did not deny the fact. How could he when he had no idea where Clank went and why he went there in the first place.

"No denial huh?" the Doctor laughed. "At any rate, I do not care of your petty quarrel or why you now have Alister Azimuth with you. What I care about right now is destroying you!" The last part was of course yelled.

"Whatever Nefarious! You may as well give up because you always lose."

His grin just grew. Pressing a button on his hand held pad, the ground then started to shake. Sand started to move and parts of metal could be seen coming out of the ground. Once fully out, Ratchet and Alister's eyes widened.

"I made a little present for your arrival. Now face my Destructo Dog! Bwahahahaha!"

A giant metal dog that was about the height of that of a ten story building of all silver but occasional parts of green and red eyes stood before them in the stance screaming ready to attack and kill.

Running towards them, the Lombaxes ran in opposite directions to end up on either side of the dog. Taking his wrench out, Alister started to shoot blue electric blasts towards the body. A few of the blasts landed but seemed to be doing little to no effect.

Following his example, Ratchet took out is Bomb Glove and threw bombs but towards the feet instead of at the body. The bombs seemed to be more effective since it bothered the dogs running pattern; this was not enough to stop the robot unfortunately.

Growling, the dog ran and tried to attack Ratchet. This proved even more so that the bombs were, for some reason, more of an effect than the blasts.

While going after the younger, Alister noticed a few buttons and switches on the back of the head. He wondered if they may be of some use to shutting the dog down.

"Ratchet! Keep him busy!"

"I don't think I have a choice!"

Putting away his wrench, Azimuth ran towards the back legs. It was difficult but he managed to grab ahold of one of the large bolts sticking out of the leg when fully getting behind the leg. It was a bit of a challenge, but he was able to jump a few more bolts up and crawl his way up onto the back.

Now he just had to get to the head. That was not as easy of a task as the first one, though the first was not easy either, since the dog kept running and turning at different speeds and at unexpected times. Despite all of these, however, the general slowly crawled his way up to the back of the head.

Ratchet had no idea what the other was doing but trusted him and tried to keep the dog distracted to his best ability. This was not difficult because the robot only seemed focused on him. A thought of wonder then went through Ratchet and he wondered if the dog was programed to just go after him since the Doctor seemed surprised to see Alister here instead of Clank. If so then the elder was perfectly safe… He couldn't help but think of how much the general sucked for being such a lucky bastard at this particular moment.

Finally reaching the back of the head, Azimuth looked around at the buttons to see what to press. Pressing the wrong thing could be very dangerous, such as a self-destruct button. A large lever was to the right of the buttons. He doubted it to be self-destructive, so he pulled it down all the way.

The dog stopped right then and its eyes looked blank for a moment. They then turned a green color and a look of almost… happiness became apparent on its face.

"What the…" Ratchet started but was cut off when the dog started to run after him full speed. "Ahhhh!"

Laughter was heard in the background from the Doctor. "It appears you turned on his 'fun mode'. He will chase you around until he grabs you and tears you apart like some of his stuffed animals."

"Are you serious?!" Ratchet yelled out. "You're fucking crazy! Either way your dog is going to tear me to shreds, whether that be from thinking I'm prey or a toy. You have problems!"

"I can't disagree with that," Dr. Nefarious said with surprise honesty. "However, I shall leave you with the dog and take my leave."

Pressing a few buttons on his pad, the machine pulled itself together into a giant box the contained its inner parts as well as the mineral inside it.

"Lawrence! Beam me and the machine up."

After the command, the metal box was the first to go and the doctor waited to disappear along with it. However, that never happened.

"Lawrence! Beam me up! This isn't funny!"

"Oh, I am sorry sir," was heard through the speaker on the pad, "I thought you wanted the machine and for you to be left to have fun with your new pet and friends."

"Just shut up and get me out of here!"

"Right away sir."

Dr. Nefarious was gone a moment later.

Both Lombaxes felt anger from this but could do nothing about it. They had to stop that dog. Looking through the buttons, there were various colors to represent different actions. What those actions were though was a mystery. However, a decision had to be made. Alister braced himself was he hit the green button.

The dog stopped once again but this time, his eyes lost all color as it fell to the ground. Going with his first instinct was a good idea in this case.

Alister jumped off the dog and headed towards Ratchet. "Are you alright?"

Nodding, he answered, "Yeah, just tired from all the running."

"Well, let's head back to the ship and rest. We can figure out where to go from there."

The younger agreed and followed the general to the ship. The walk was quiet since the city was still evacuated.

Returning to the ship, there was a site there that they wished to have never seen. The ship was no longer one piece, but instead, it was several. Debris was scattered everywhere. It was even hard to tell what part was what for some of them.

"Who could have…?" Alister started but did not finish from the surprise of the destruction of the ship. It was one he built himself; one of his favorite ships. He had had it for years.

Ratchet noticed a small white card on the ground. Picking it up, it read, 'I also thought I would leave you a special gift of figuring out how to leave the island. Enjoy your puzzle. –Dr. Nefarious'.

"That son of a bitch!" Ratchet yelled which made the general jump from surprise. He then walked over and read over the younger's shoulder. Anger boiled in his veins when he finished.

"He is going to pay for that." He mumbled under his breath. "But first, we should probably find somewhere to stay. It's going to be nightfall soon."

Turning around to face the elder who had presently been behind him, he nodded in agreement. "I agree. Let's head back to the city. Maybe some people will be back by now."

"I hope so." Azimuth replied before both left for the city limits.

*Yes! I finished it! Sorry about taking so long to update. I've been working on this for the past couple of days. I hope you all like it. Thanks for reading! :D


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